Greater London · Fire damper testing
Fire and smoke damper testing in Custom House
Fire damper testing across Custom House and nearby, timed so the site keeps working and finished with a written report and pictures.
- Corroded dampers in damp risers and plant rooms
- Buildings with no damper register
- Smoke dampers with no recent test
Fire damper testing in Custom House, done properly
Ductwork can carry fire and smoke between compartments, and the damper is what stops it. A damper only does its job if the blade can drop fully. Annual drop testing is how you know in each part of the building. The work covers offices and schools, riser dampers and hospitals and care homes, and the jobs we see most are corroded dampers in damp risers and plant rooms and dampers flagged on a fire risk assessment.
Damper testing in London buildings is normally planned around the people in them, so we work floor by floor or out of hours. Access to ceiling voids and risers is agreed with the building manager first.
Every visit ends with a written report and photos, so you have a record of what was done and when. Where the work is a TR19® Grease clean, the certificate is issued through the BESCA Vent Hygiene Elite portal.
- Location
- Custom House (E16, E13)
- Region
- Greater London
- Paperwork
- Written report with pictures
- Quotes
- A fixed price before we start
- When we work
- After hours by arrangement; emergencies any time
- Call
- 0345 646 2711
- Reviewed
- 30 October 2026
What affects the cost of fire damper testing
We don’t publish a price list, because no two systems are the same. The quote depends on:
- How easy every part is to reach
- How many systems or sites are involved
- Working hours and out-of-hours timing
- Site requirements such as sign-in and permits
The price reflects the work, not guesswork. That’s why every job is surveyed first, and why the quote is fixed before we start.
Asking for a quote
Photos let us diagnose from a distance. Try to include:
- How we’d reach plant on a roof or in a plant room
- Any access panels or hatches you can see
- Anything you’ve noticed, such as smells, noise, drips or poor airflow
- Where the site is and what kind of site it is
For a fixed quote, ring 0345 646 2711 or use the quote form and tell us the type of site, your opening hours and roughly what the system looks like. A few photos and your last certificate or report help a lot. We typically come back within one working day.
FAQs for Custom House
Does London parking affect a job in Custom House?
Parking and loading in London need planning, so tell us about bays, permits and building rules when you book. Where restrictions apply in the day, an evening or overnight visit normally gets round them.
Which fire service covers Custom House?
Custom House is in the area of London Fire Brigade. Failed dampers on a report should be followed by a record of the repair, so the file shows the problem was closed out.
What do you do with what you remove?
It’s contained and taken away. We collect grease, debris and waste water as we go, so it does not spread.
Whose job is it to make sure fire dampers are tested?
It’s the responsible person, under the Fire Safety Order 2005. Testing at least yearly and keeping the reports is how they can show it’s being done.
Is there a survey before the work?
Yes. We always survey first, from your pictures and details, or with a visit where needed. A fixed quote follows.
What should I send you?
A short description and a few photos plus the address and your hours. We’ll ask for anything else we need.
Can testing be done without disrupting the building?
Yes. Testing can be booked outside working hours, which helps where ceilings can’t be opened during the day. Hospitals and care homes are planned with the site team.
Can you set up regular visits?
Yes. Regular plans can run on 3, 6 or 12-monthly cycles, depending on what the system needs.
Keeping the system healthy
Aftercare is simple, and it helps at the next visit:
- Close off damper faults promptly
- Make sure access panels stay clear and usable
- Tell contractors where dampers are before they start work
- Never wedge or tie a damper open
Dampers we couldn’t reach are listed with the reason, for example a missing panel or a covered hatch. Access panels can be fitted so those dampers are tested on the next visit.
A simple register of every damper helps a great deal: location, type, last test date and result. It stops dampers getting lost as the building changes.
What happens on the day
A visit follows the same order every time: sheeting and protection first, make the system safe, carry out the fire damper testing, tidy up and hand over the paperwork. The visit itself takes anything from a couple of hours for a handful of dampers to a full day for a large building. If your building in Custom House has sign-in rules, permits or key holders, mention them when you book.
- First we look at any damper register, drawings or earlier test reports.
- We find every damper and open it up through the access panel.
- We release each fire damper blade and operate smoke dampers from their controls.
- Dampers that close fully are reset and left open.
- The results go into a report, with failed dampers and remedials listed.
Getting ready for the visit
- Mention any parking or loading restrictions
- Tell us about site rules, permits or sign-in
- Move anything stored near the system
How to get a quote
Quoting starts with a diagnosis, from your pictures and details or, where that isn’t enough, a survey on site. Then we send a fixed price so you know the cost before any work starts.
Advice
Managing agents and facilities teams in Custom House
Running several sites is easier with one contractor. We cover South East England and London, so visits at different addresses can be planned together and kept to a regular schedule.
We regularly work with managing agents. Send the address, what’s needed and how access works, and we will send a fixed quote.
Fire dampers in Custom House buildings
There are about 52 schools, colleges and universities, about 41 caring premises (care homes, nurseries and hospitals) and about 18 hotels, B&Bs and guest houses on the FSA’s food hygiene register across Custom House and its immediate surroundings (about a mile and a half). Larger buildings like these are often divided into fire compartments, with dampers where ducts pass between them. Managed London buildings usually need damper testing booked through the agent, often out of hours. London Fire Brigade covers Custom House. When a fire safety officer audits a non-domestic building, maintenance of systems like dampers can come up.
School buildings such as St Joachim's Catholic Primary School are usually tested in the holidays, wherever they have dampers. If you manage offices, shops or flats near Custom House station, the ductwork in them may pass through fire-resisting walls and floors, and any dampers need testing at least once a year.
Custom House is about 1 mile south of Canning Town, in Greater London. Custom House gets the same approach as every site we work on: diagnosis first, a fixed price, out-of-hours working where necessary and a written report with photos. Custom House is one of 764 places in Greater London where we work for fire damper testing.
Postcode districts we cover here for fire damper testing: E16 and E13. Whether your site is on Tree Road, Ethel Road and Booth Road or anywhere close by, we can help. Main roads around Custom House include the A1020, which makes travel easy for fire damper testing. Other places close to Custom House include West Silvertown (1 mile south-west), Silvertown (1 mile south), Canning Town (1 mile north), Royal Docks (1 mile east) and Limmo Peninsula (1 mile west). Further out, we also cover London (5 miles west), City of Westminster (8 miles west), Marylebone (8 miles west), Kensington (10 miles west), St Pancras (6 miles west) and Shoreditch (5 miles west).
Around Custom House
Typical jobs here are in premises near Thames Barrier Park, The Royal Docks Community School and Royal Docks Academy and the streets around them. Custom House has its own railway station: Custom House station. Well-known places in the area include Gallions Reach Shopping Park (2.2 miles east) and Charlton Athletic Museum (1.5 miles south). The countryside around Custom House includes Gilbert's Pit and Tower Hill.
How the job changes from site to site
Schools, hospitals and care homes
Hospitals and care homes stay occupied around the clock. We plan the order of work with the site team so care isn’t interrupted.
Access panels
Where there’s no access panel, we record the damper as not tested and say why. We can fit access panels so it’s tested next time.
What happens if it’s left?
Testing every year builds a history for each damper, which shows patterns early. If the same damper keeps giving trouble, the record shows it long before it fails outright. London buildings are shared, so a fire or failure in one system can reach the neighbours above and beside you.
No two sites are the same, so each one gets its own fixed quote. The size of the job, how we reach it, its condition and the working hours all make a difference.
Why Custom House businesses choose us
- CHAS, SafeContractor and ISO 9001
- A fixed price before any work starts
- Survey first, then a fixed quote
- A BESCA Vent Hygiene Elite member, cleaning to BESA TR19® Grease
Places near Custom House
What else we do in Custom House
Signs you need fire damper testing in Custom House
Other trades work around dampers all the time. Cables get run through them, links get knocked and blades get wedged open, and any of those can stop a damper closing.
What we are most often called out for:
- Dampers clogged with dust or grease
- Blades that jam part-way when released
- Corroded dampers in damp risers and plant rooms
- Damper actions from a fire risk assessment
Queen's House, about 2.3 miles south-west, is one of the historic houses near Custom House, and older buildings converted to new uses often have ventilation added later.
What to look for in a quote
- What paperwork you get at the end
- Whether the whole system is included, or only the parts that are easy to reach
- What happens if part of the system can’t be accessed
- What insurance they carry